Hearing on Jihadist Social Network Use Today

Ways to counteract the use of Facebook, Twitter and Youtube for recruiting Islamist militants will be on the agenda Tuesday afternoon in a House Committee on Homeland Security’s Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence hearing.

As chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) has convened several hearings on the issue of “Muslim radicalization.” Tuesday’s hearing is titled: “Jihadist Use of Social Media – How to Prevent Terrorism and Preserve Innovation.” Rep. Patrick Meehan (R-Pa.), who chairs the subcommittee, cited the case of Colleen LaRose, or the so-called “Jihad Jane” as an example of how Islamists used the Internet to reach new recruits. “This hearing will examine the growing use of online social networks by jihadis to communicate and spread their messages of violence,” Meehan said in a statement. “It will also focus on government and private sector efforts to minimize jihadi content on mainstream websites and how to enhance these efforts while maintaining innovation.”

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War 2.0 presents original research on the intersection of social media and national security in order to lay the groundwork for future reporting on the subject. It catalogues the research projects run by various parts of the national security community, reports on how they’re being used operationally, and shows the connections between the entities funding and performing work in this burgeoning area. Whether such efforts are successful or not, they are likely to influence national security strategy in the years ahead..